


Short Stories from the Childhood of Harry Potter

by knight_bus_of_doom



Series: The Long Game [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, I'm not tagging all the background characters, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin Raise Harry Potter, and Severus too, more tags as i write
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-05
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:08:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27892072
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/knight_bus_of_doom/pseuds/knight_bus_of_doom
Summary: A follow-up to Severus and Snape: days in the life of a young Harry Potter, one chapter a year from the death of his parents to the start of Hogwarts. All from the perspective of Severus Snape, one of his three parents.
Relationships: Background Emma Vanity/OFC, Background Pandora Lovegood/Xenophilius Lovegood, Remus Lupin & Severus Snape, Sirius Black & Severus Snape, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Series: The Long Game [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2028898
Comments: 19
Kudos: 91





	1. One - A Rescue

**Author's Note:**

> HEAR YE HEAR YE!
> 
> If you have not read Severus and Snape, you will be horribly confused. Really, just, lots confused. If you want to read this first anyway, some basic stuff: Severus saw Lily die once, went back in time, lived all of his school years again in an entirely different way, and then Lily and James died again. He is now raising Harry with Remus and Sirius, and trying to figure out life.

The Sorting Hat's words echoed in Severus's head, even as he let himself be pulled by Remus into Dumbledore's fireplace. _Go find Harry Potter._

_Go find Harry Potter._ Did that mean that... what, Harry was the long game? But the Hat had said that Dumbledore was the long game.

Maybe it had just wanted them to leave.

It didn't matter in the end, though, because Severus was going to find Harry regardless of all the reasons to do so. Remus had taken them through to the Leaky Cauldron, which was a bit surprising. Severus turned to him to ask what the plan was.

"It was the first place I thought of where we could blend in," Remus told him before he could voice a question. "Severus..." Remus trailed off, which was probably a good thing.

"Petunia," Severus said, reminding himself as much as Remus. "We need to get to Petunia."

"Right. Lily gave me her address," Remus said quickly. "In case--"

"She gave it to me too," Severus said, leading the way out to Muggle London, going to a nearby alley, and then sticking out his wand arm to call the Knight Bus.

It took it only moments to arrive, and Severus dug his wallet out of his pocket as he boarded, telling the driver, "16 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey."

The driver nodded. "Be a bit," she warned Severus. "Not going that direction just yet."

Severus nodded his understanding and led Remus to a pair of seats, glad that they hadn't switched to beds yet. Honestly, what had they been thinking with that?

"It wasn't 16, was it?" Remus asked quietly.

"I didn't want to give her the right number," Severus said. "Ideally, I'd give her two streets over, but I didn't look at a map of the area. I didn't--" he stopped the thought right there, but it continued in his head. He hadn't thought this would happen. Lily had asked him to check in on her sister, just in case, but although he'd memorized the address, he hadn't prepared any further. It had felt too much like tempting fate.

Tempting Fate.

Severus was filled with the urge to punch someone again, and barely felt it when Remus reached out and squeezed his arm.

"Sev, do you know--"

Severus looked over at him.

Remus took a shuddering breath. "Sirius?"

"He went after Peter," Severus informed him, tonelessly.

"I know, but where do you think they went?"

"Remus--" Severus glanced around them, seeing if anyone was interested in their conversation, before focusing back on his friend. "He _went after Peter._ They're probably--they probably fought. Or he's still chasing him."

Remus just stared at him, for a long minute. "No," he said, finally. "There's no way he would--Pete would--there's no way."

"Fidelius Charms don't fall," Severus said, and fuck, he was so tired, he just wanted to stop. But he couldn't, not yet.

Remus was silent, his brain working so hard Severus could hear it. "There's no other way?" he asked finally.

"Information freely given," Severus ground out. "That's the only way for someone to have seen the house, let alone gotten inside."

Remus shuddered, once, and then again, and then he was shaking like a leaf against Severus's side. Severus leaned heavily against him, but whether it was to help Remus or himself, he had no idea. At least shaking apart together was better than doing it alone. Right?

They were almost unconscious, and yet still shaking, when the bus screeched to a stop and the driver hollered, "Privet Drive, Little Whinging!"

Severus jolted to his feet, Remus being dragged up by their joined hands, and then they were stumbling off the bus and onto a suffocatingly residential street. '16', said the house in front of them in big brass letters. Severus looked left, spotted a '10' a few doors down, and strode in that direction with Remus on his heels.

They stood in front of Petunia's house for several long minutes, still holding hands tightly, not even speaking. What if Harry wasn't here?

Merlin, what if he _was_?

What if Dumbledore was?

Remus sucked in a breath and pulled Severus forward, up the short walk, knocking on the door firmly.

Severus suddenly realized he had no idea what time it was, and glanced at his watch. 9pm. Well, it's not like Petunia expected politeness from him, regardless. It's not like they wouldn't knock at any time of day or night.

Remus had to knock several times before the door was wrenched open, and there stood the man Severus had met at Lily and James's wedding. Vernon, he remembered, having heard Lily rant about him several times.

"Mr. Dursley," he greeted, opting for an approach that wouldn't lead to a door getting slammed in their faces. Not that it would stop them for long.

"What the bloody hell do _you_ want?" Vernon asked loudly. "Bloody visitors, every hour, storming in and out of here in those ridiculous clothes."

Severus breathed a little easier. That was something answered, then. Someone else had been here, and he'd bet anything it had been Dumbledore or another Order member. The only question was if Harry was still here.

"My apologies, sir. We're hoping to speak to Petunia," Remus said calmly. "It should only take a moment or two, and then we'll leave you to your evening."

Vernon grumbled, but then turned back to the house for a moment, as if considering, and let them both in. "You were at that... wedding," he observed, looking at Severus.

"We both were," Severus told him, not really sure how to deal with this man. He mostly seemed confused, honestly. Out of his element. Severus didn't blame him.

Vernon led the way into the living room. "Sit," he told them, and then rushed out of the room again.

Remus stared after him, then turned to Severus. "I--"

Severus shook his head. "I don't know either. Lily hated him."

Remus cringed, but at the sentiment or the past tense, Severus didn't know.

Just as quickly as Vernon had left the room, Petunia rushed in the room, a child on each hip. Severus stood up immediately, eyes drawn to the shock of black hair on the boy on the right. _Harry._ He reached out his arms to take him, but Petunia stood several steps back.

"Severus," she said, her voice shaking. "What are you doing here?"

Severus noticed his hands were shaking, and stuffed them in his pockets, trying to find the words to-- "We're here to keep Harry safe. I know you--Lily--Lily wanted us to take care of him."

Petunia made a keening sound, and both babies dropped an inch or two as her arms lost their strength for a moment. "He was telling the truth?"

"What?"

"That _man_ ," Petunia spat. "Dumbledore."

"What did he say?" Remus asked, stepping forward.

"That she was dead!" Petunia shouted, and then glanced at the children she was holding and shuddered. "But I didn't--"

"You didn't believe him," Severus said.

Petunia shook her head rapidly. "He... seemed off. Freaky, somehow. I didn't trust him."

Severus almost laughed. "You're right not to," he told her frankly. He'd tell as many people as believed him. "He's a liar."

"But not about this," Remus said. "I'm sorry."

Petunia sat down hard on the couch, hard enough to jostle both boys, because Severus could see now that the younger infant was wearing blue pajamas with cars all over them. If that didn't signal 'boy' on a child of Petunia's, he didn't know what would. Her son, because he had to be her son, woke up at the movement and immediately started crying. Petunia looked harried, shifting Harry against her side as she tried to rock her son.

"Can I?" Severus asked her, his voice breaking, reaching out for Harry.

Petunia looked at him sharply, looked down at Harry, and then nodded, and he immediately swept Harry up in his arms, breathing hard as he cradled him to his chest. Remus was at his shoulder in an instant, hand on Harry's head, and Severus felt something in him settle and then sink, fast, fast. No, Harry wasn't safe yet. He had to get him safe.

"What happened?" Petunia asked, bouncing her son, watching carefully as Severus shifted Harry into a more comfortable position.

Severus hesitated. "You know Lily was... they were hiding from someone."

Petunia nodded.

"He found them," Severus said. Simply, to the point, and yet he'd never uttered something more devastating. He screwed his eyes shut, putting his nose to Harry's hair. He couldn't crumple when he was holding Harry. He couldn't drop. He had to stand up straight, keep himself moving.

Petunia made a choked noise, clutching her son tighter, which just made him cry harder.

"We want to take him," Remus said, a hand still on Harry's head. "Petunia. Can we take him?"

"Is he... like you?"

Severus looked at her, stared at her. "I don't know," he said. The truth. "Probably."

Petunia swallowed, looking at Harry, and Severus and Remus, and her son, and finally in the direction her husband had fled. "Take him," she said, finally.

Severus swayed on his feet with relief, with anger, with surprise. She would give up her nephew, her family, that easily?

Did she hate magic that much?

Or did she, maybe, understand the danger?

He didn't ask her. He didn't say anything, actually, just nodded.

It was Remus who spoke. "Did he come with anything?"

"A letter," Petunia said, scathing. "Just in case we didn't answer the door, I think, to _explain_."

Severus gaped at the idea that anyone, even Dumbledore, would tell a woman her sister had been killed through a letter taped to a toddler.

"Can we have it?" Remus asked.

Petunia nodded and left the room, sparing a glance for Severus and Harry. Maybe wondering if they'd still be there when she returned. Severus let out a breath as she disappeared around the corner, looking down and noticing for the first time a bright blue plaster on his forehead. Had he been injured?

They were standing in the same places when Petunia came back, and if she was surprised, she didn't show it, simply holding out a folded bit of parchment to Remus.

"Thank you," he said quietly, tucking the letter into his robes.

Petunia nodded, and then just stood there, staring at them.

Finally, Remus moved toward the door, hesitantly. Severus understood his uncertainty--was she just letting them leave with Harry? An infant? They didn't even have proof of Lily's will to show her.

But Remus kept walking, opening the door and walking out to the sidewalk. Severus went to follow him, and spun on his heel at the last second to face Petunia.

"I'll let you know if--when--about the funeral," he told her.

She looked startled, but her mouth twitched, like she almost wanted to smile. "Thank you."

He hesitated a moment longer. "I'm sorry, Tuney," he said, using her nickname almost automatically. It was the name he'd met her by, after all, even if those memories were much more recent for her than for him. He'd met her and Lily at the same time.

Her eyes widened, a bit shocked, and then her entire face shuttered and she nodded quickly. "Thank you."

Severus nodded back at her and stepped outside, grabbing at Remus's hand with his free one to Apparate out.

"Severus."

He turned back to Petunia, standing in the doorway.

"Write--send--that he's--" she gestured to Harry, and Severus got it, understood.

"We'll send you photos, and we'll visit, if you want," he told her quietly, and waited for her nod before he twisted on the spot and took Harry and Remus away.

They landed in Emma and Trish's living room, and Remus looked in a circle in confusion, only seeming to realize where they were when Trish ran in, brandishing a wand, wearing a bathrobe inside-out over her pajamas. "Severus?" she asked, eyes wild, lowering the wand quickly.

And her appearance, her casual stance, the familiar walls, everything in Severus gave way. "Take him," he gasped at Trish, who hurried forward to take Harry.

Severus collapsed, straight onto the floor, and only dimly registered Remus falling after him, into him, a mix of their tears making everything salty and damp and horrible.

Harry was safe. Harry was safe, and so Severus could--he could--

He cried, holding onto whatever part of Remus he could reach, until they both fell unconscious.

The next time he awoke, it was to Emma shaking him and saying his name.

He sat up immediately, noting Remus curled up behind him on the bed, and stared at her. "Where is Harry?"

She pointed to the corner of the room, where Severus could see Harry's outline inside a small crib.

"We picked up a crib and some supplies, after Susie," Emma whispered. "Just in case it happened again."

Severus nodded. "What time is it?"

"Around 7. I didn't want to wake you, you've barely been asleep four hours, but we just got notice to come to an Order meeting."

Severus blinked at her and then turned to shake Remus awake. "We need to go."

"I figured you might. Trish was getting dressed to go when I left her, since we usually only send one of us and she's the better Occlumens--"

"But if they're looking for me, this is one of the first places they'll go, and they'll take Trish's absence as an opportunity."

Remus groaned, shifting slightly under Severus's hand.

"Remus," he said sharply, putting as much intensity into the whisper as possible. "Get up."

Remus sat up so violently that he almost knocked Severus onto the floor, gasping for breath. "What?"

"We have to go," Severus told him. "But we can't go to the flat, or to Adrian and Cora, or to your parents. Not until we find Sirius, or Alice and Frank, and access James and Lily's wills."

"You're looking for Sirius?" Emma asked. "I thought you--"

"What?" Severus asked, panic setting in at the look in her eyes. "What, Em?"

"Get dressed," she told him. "Take whatever you want from the baby supplies, hall closet, anywhere. I'll be right back."

Severus watched her walk briskly from the room and then sprang into action. "You get things for us," he told Remus. "Clothes, winter things, food. I'll get a bag for Harry."

He had barely grabbed a bag and started filling it with baby food when Emma found him again and shoved a copy of the _Daily Prophet_ into his hands, pointing to a story on the bottom half of the front page.

"This," she told him, taking the bag from his now-limp hands and starting to fill it with supplies.

He read quickly, once, and then again. "He's... he was... what?" _Muggle Massacre,_ the title read, and the word 'massacre' kept catching his eye. "He wouldn't--Sirius wouldn't do this."

Emma stopped, stock-still. "Of course he wouldn't," she said. "But that's what they think, and that's where he is." She jabbed a finger at the last line: 'Black was quickly arrested by Aurors, and is being securely held to await sentencing'. "He's at the Ministry, in the holding cells."

"Fuck," Severus said with feeling, staring at the story again.

Remus ran up, Harry on his hip. "What?"

Unable to ease him into anything right now, Severus took Harry and shoved the paper into his hands. "Sirius was arrested."

"What?!" Remus read the article with wide eyes. "He'd _never_ \--"

"Not the point," Emma said, putting a full back over Severus's shoulder. "Get out now, figure out how to spring Sirius later. Trish left at least five minutes ago."

"How do we _spring_ him? We're barely avoiding getting arrested ourselves! Merlin, we don't have the power to--" Remus cut himself off quickly. "Severus, I know where to go."

"Where?"

"No time," Remus said, grabbing his hand. "Thank you, Emma."

"No problem," she said, hugging them both quickly and tapping Harry on the nose. "Write me as soon as you're safe."

"We will," Severus told her, as Remus Apparated them all away.

They landed to the sound of screaming, and Severus panicked for a moment before he realized it was Harry, and then he panicked all over again. "Harry--no, Harry, it's--" he bounced in place, but Harry just screamed harder. He looked around quickly, noting that they seemed to be alone and in someone's backyard, before returning his attention to Harry.

"Apparition," Remus said, loudly, over the sound. "He did it last night, too. Makes sense, since he's barely traveled this way, this much, before."

Severus gave up on trying to calm Harry and just clutched him tighter, keeping the baby from flinging himself out of Severus's arms. "Where are we?"

"Sirius's aunt's house," Remus said, leading the way to the back door.

"Remus," Severus said quickly, "Sirius's whole family is made up of Death Eaters."

"Not this part," Remus told him, still moving forward. "That's why I met them. Andromeda married a Muggle, got burned off the family tree, just like Sirius did." He knocked on the door.

"Andromeda?" Severus asked, wracking his brain.

"You might have heard of her sister, Narcissa?" Remus said dryly over his shoulder, just as the door opened.

"Ah, my lovely sister, Cissy," the woman who opened it said, one eyebrow raised, a hand on her hip. "Young man, this is not usually the door where I greet guests."

Severus saw Remus swallow carefully. "Mrs. Tonks, I'm sorry. I'm Remus, we met before."

Her face softened instantly. "Of course I remember you, Remus. And I've seen the _Prophet_ , I can only--" her eyes focused closer on Severus, several meters behind Remus. "Goodness, give me that child before he cries himself hoarse."

Severus glanced at Remus, who nodded fervently, so he walked forward and handed Harry over as carefully as possible, wincing at how red his face had gotten.

"Oh, my dear, I know. Apparition _is_ so very unpleasant, but a small price to pay, eh? Hard to understand now, though."

Somehow, Harry quieted almost immediately, looking up at this new face with wide, tear-filled eyes.

"Alright," Andromeda said, looking back up at them. "That's one thing sorted. Come in, we'll fix the rest of it."

Remus walked inside almost immediately, and Severus followed more slowly, watching Andromeda as he did so. She looked right back at him knowingly, her mouth pulled into a half-smile. Severus wondered what house she had been in at Hogwarts.

"There's a guest suite upstairs--I have the feeling you could both use a shower and a nap. You can take turns being asleep, if you'd like?" She was asking both of them, technically, but her eyes were on Severus.

Remus trusted this woman. Sirius trusted this woman. And honestly, Sirius was so exhausted, he knew that even if he tried to stay downstairs and awake he would pass out soon enough. One more look at Harry, who was still looking up at Andromeda calmly and winding his hand into her hair, and his decision was made. "We only need a few hours, and then we can explain everything."

She nodded, hearing his response for what it was. "Up the stairs to the left, towels are in the closet. Don't worry, we'll be just fine, and I'll wake you if there's any trouble."

"Where's Nymphadora?" Remus asked.

"My husband and daughter are... taking a holiday, for lack of a better term. In the Muggle world." Andromeda smiled slightly at Severus's confused look. "Ted is a Muggle," she explained calmly. "Nymphadora has magic, but with everything that has been happening lately, I sent them both to his relatives. I stayed, to do what I could."

"This is a safe house?" Severus asked. If it was, they needed to leave again. Even if he and Remus hadn't lived here before, eventually, they'd send someone.

"Not for the Order," Andromeda said. "As much as they'd like it to be. No, just for friends and family."

Severus wondered where they fell under that description, but nodded anyway. "Thank you," he said, and turned to walk up the stairs, Remus close behind him.

Remus showered first, and had to wake Severus up when it was his turn; he'd fallen asleep on the bed, shoes still on. He stumbled through getting clean, and then Transfigured his clothes into more pajama-looking items and fell into bed beside Remus, falling unconscious almost immediately.

He awoke some time later. He'd slept longer than he meant to, judging by the amount of sun coming in through the window. Remus was still asleep beside him, brow slightly furrowed even in sleep, and he shook him slightly.

"Mmhuh?"

"We slept for a while," Severus told him, quietly, not wanting to panic him. "We need to make a plan."

Remus forced himself upright, sighing and rubbing at his eyes. "Okay. Okay, alright. With or without Andromeda?"

"With?" Severus smiled wryly. "If we don't like what she wants to do, we can talk about it later."

"Fuck, Sev, I just... I want her to help. I'm sorry that I just took us here, without discussing it, but I remembered her and she's always seemed so... competent."

"An actual adult," Severus summarized, smiling.

"Just because you're technically in your thirties doesn't mean all of us are," Remus teased.

"I'm really not."

"I mean... you kind of are."

Severus rolled his eyes, lost in the comfort of their banter, but another moment had him realizing that Sirius was usually part of said banter, and then he was thinking about Sirius, and then about James and Lily, and-- "Let's go downstairs."

Remus nodded, sliding out of bed and dropping the Transfiguration on his clothes, Severus doing the same, and they both headed downstairs as one.

Andromeda was sitting in the living room, Harry awake and babbling on a blanket in front of her, a new bandage on his forehead. Had she not healed him? "Good afternoon," she greeted them. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, thank you," Remus said, sitting on the opposite end of the couch.

Severus, wanting to be closer to Harry, settled on the floor.

"Alright." Andromeda sighed. "I've read the _Prophet_ \--all of it, several times--so I have an idea of what's going on. What else do I need to know?"

"I have no idea what the _Prophet _knows," Severus admitted. It was true--he'd only read that one story and hadn't even seen the headline, although he could guess what it had said. "Lord Voldemort is dead, at least, he seems to be." He paused. "So are Lily and James Potter. This is their son."__

__

__Andromeda nodded. "I've seen photos," she said, looking at Harry a bit sadly. "Sirius dotes on his godson constantly."_ _

__

__"Sirius--" Remus choked a bit, but cleared his throat and continued. "Peter Pettigrew was secret-keeper for Lily and James. Voldemort found them anyway, so he must have--he saw that there had been an attack and fled. Sirius followed him. We don't know what happened between that, and the... what the paper said."_ _

__

__"I already reached out to the Wizengamot and demanded an audience," Andromeda told them. "I sent it before you got here. He's being sentenced without a trial."_ _

__

__"He didn't do this," Remus said, voice harsh._ _

__

__"That doesn't matter right now," Andromeda said, her tone even. "If I go to them and say he's innocent, they'll write me off, call me crazy. But I have power, and they're painted into a bit of a corner with me, so I can demand a trial for my cousin. It's the law, anyway."_ _

__

__"What corner?"_ _

__

__She shrugged. "Either I'm a Death Eater because I'm a Black, in which case, I have all the power that comes with being a Black. Or I'm not a Death Eater because I'm a Muggle-lover, and then I'm on the winning side of this and I'm just fighting for what's right. Either way, to not listen to me looks bad for them. I expect an answer within a day, and a meeting within a week. Hopefully we can get Sirius a trial before his sentencing goes through. Who is he supposed to be with?" she asked, tilting her head at Harry._ _

__

__Severus wanted to say 'us', but that wasn't the answer she needed. "Lily and James named Sirius godfather, and our friend Alice godmother," he told her. "But Sirius is... and Alice and her husband are in hiding, we don't know where."_ _

__

__"They're in danger as well, most likely," Remus put in. "And they have a baby the same age."_ _

__

__Andromeda nodded slowly. "Who was Harry with before?"_ _

__

__"His Muggle aunt," Severus said, and he could tell his tone was biting. "With no additional protections on the house, from what I could tell."_ _

__

__Andromeda looked vaguely shocked. "Who put him there?"_ _

__

__"The Order," Severus said, before Remus could say 'Dumbledore'. He might trust Andromeda enough to take a nap in her house, but he wasn't going to spill all of their suspicions. "He was gone from his house by the time we got there, and we tracked him to his aunt's by way of... an Order member."_ _

__

__Andromeda raised an eyebrow at his vagueries, but nodded anyway._ _

__

__"Lily and James wanted us to take care of him," Remus put in quietly. "They told us, when he was born."_ _

__

__Andromeda sighed. "Well, we'll get Sirius a trial, get in to visit him. If he can prove his innocence, you can certainly hide out here until he can officially take custody of Harry. If not, you should write to Alice." She smiled at them, all kindness, and Severus kind of wanted to cry. "We'll keep him safe."_ _


	2. Two - A Lady

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Years eight and nine still don't have prompts! Lmk if you have a request or an idea.

A letter from Alice and Frank wasn't a surprise. They'd written them regularly back when Sirius's trial had been stretching on and on, trying to figure out a backup plan for keeping Harry with them. The letters never had an address, of course, not with Death Eaters still running around free, threatening every member of the Order. But even after Sirius had been pronounced innocent, and he had taken official guardianship of Harry, the letters still continued. A monthly ritual, a reassurance that yes, they were still surviving, even in hiding. 

Severus opened the letter quickly. They were always to all three of them, after all, and both Remus and Sirius were out at the moment. Severus could show them when they got home. As soon as he split open the wax and unfolded the paper, though, panic set in--the handwriting was wrong. 

He scanned the words quickly, fumbling for a chair, sinking into it and then immediately jumping up to go check on Harry. 

He crept into the room he and Harry shared as quietly as possible, and stared at Harry's sleeping form for a good five minutes before exiting again and pacing around the living room. 

Alice and Frank had been captured. Days ago. Nobody had written them or let them know, but that wasn't truly surprising. They weren't really in the Order rumor mill, not anymore, even though Sirius went out on missions sometimes. They didn't hear from Mary very often, who was the only person closer to Alice and Frank than they were. 

But now they'd been found, and taken to St. Mungo's, and enough of their correspondence had been found that Frank's mother had known to write. 

She hadn't disclosed their conditions. 

Severus knew what that meant, probably. People didn't hold back good news. 

He read through the letter again, and again felt that stab of relief at the mention of their son, Neville, who was safe. Severus, Sirius and Remus had never met him, not with Alice and Frank risking their lives whenever they stepped outside, but Neville was precisely the same age as Harry, and the fact that Severus could quite accurately picture how small the boy must be was enough to worry him. 

How alone he must be, right now, with both his parents in the hospital, in what were probably dire conditions. 

The letter hadn't made any requests, just given information, but Severus knew that they all would want to go and see Alice and Frank. They couldn't take Harry, though, not even with all three of them there to protect him. Severus didn't want to bring him into a hospital, either. He quickly penned a letter to Amy and sent it off, a short request to keep Harry for a few hours tonight. 

By the time Sirius and Remus were both back--Remus from his substitute teaching job and Sirius from an Order recon mission--Severus had already received a reply from Amy. 

Remus, who had gotten home first, had read the letter from Lady Longbottom, and then the response from Amy, and blinked at Severus. "Tonight?" 

"Yes, if Sirius can." 

Sirius required a little more cursing, and a little more pacing, and a comforting hand before he acquiesced to Severus's plan with a sigh. "I wish she'd just told us how they are," he whined. "I'd like to know what we're walking into." 

"Would that actually help?" Remus asked him, hoisting Harry on one hip and holding out his bag with the other. "You'd fret the same either way." 

"I like my complaints to be accurate," Sirius said with a smile. 

Severus smiled back at him, more reassured than amused. Sirius had gone so long, even after being declared innocent, not joking at all. He'd barely cracked a smile, except around Harry. Even now, his tone sometimes went stilted, like he wasn't sure how to be like he was before. Moments like this one weren't so few and far between, anymore, but Severus found them precious in a way he definitely hadn't before. He knew from late-night conversations that Remus felt the same way. 

They Apparated to Amy's quickly, Remus wrapping tight arms around Harry to shield him from the worst effects. 

They landed in the street in front of her apartment, since she lived in a Wizarding part of London, and Sirius quickly strode up and knocked on the door. It opened less than a minute later, and Amy beckoned them inside. "Susie's in the living room in her playpen," she told Remus as they walked down the hall. "You can put Harry down with her, and tell me why you needed a babysitter at only a few hours notice." 

Remus nodded and carried Harry past her toward the sounds of Susie laughing. Severus looked at Amy, hesitating, but he knew her pretty well now, and she was in the Order and worked for the Ministry. She'd find out soon either way. "Alice and Frank were attacked." 

Amy blinked at him and then took a step forward, lowering her voice, even though Harry and Susie were far too young to hear them or understand. Severus could sympathize with the habit. "Are they alright?" she asked. "Is their son--" 

"Neville is fine," Sirius said, although he stayed where he was, leaning against the wall. He was probably exhausted, Severus realized. It had been over a year since Lily and James had died, since Lord Voldemort had been defeated, and yet their friends were still being attacked, still dying. 

"Thank Merlin," Amy breathed. "What's tonight about, then?" 

"We're going to see them," Severus explained, as Remus walked back into the hallway. "At St. Mungo's." 

"Maybe we'll actually get some details," Sirius grumbled. 

Amy nodded. "Come back and tell me, alright?" 

"Will do." 

Not bothering to leave first, Severus nodded to Remus and Severus and the three of them Apparated, separately, to St. Mungo's entrance hall. People were flowing around them, barely looking up as three full-grown men popped into their midst, which was just as well. They weren't in hiding, per se. Sirius was Harry's legal guardian, and while they all were targets for Death Eaters in their own ways, only Sirius was really high profile. They always traveled together, or stayed in public places. Their small flat was warded to the gills, with Andromeda as secret-keeper. 

But Severus still didn't like people looking at them. 

Sirius was already taking charge, walking over to an information desk. "Alice and Frank Longbottom?" he asked the Healer sitting behind it. 

He flicked through his records, running a finger down a list of patients, and then glanced up at the three of them. "Short-Term Spell Damange Ward," he said. "But they're marked as restricted, you'll need an invitation from a family member to see them." 

"But they're alive?" Remus asked. 

"Yes," the Healer confirmed, and then tapped his wand on the counter, a sheet of paper appearing. "Here's a map. Here we are--" he poked a spot on the map, and a splotch of blue appeared. "And here's their room." 

"You said we couldn't visit." 

"There are windows," he said, smiling gently. "Sometimes people just want to see for themselves." 

Severus nodded, taking the map and starting to walk in the right direction. He'd been here, but it had been awhile. He usually avoided this place like... well, the plague, for lack of a better idiom. As he walked, he tried to think of who he knew who worked here. Maybe they couldn't see Alice and Frank, but they still needed information. But he couldn't remember anyone. Hiding out was not conducive to networking.

Remus, who had apparently been thinking along the same lines, caught up to him. "We could write Lady Longbottom and get permission to visit. One of us comes back in a few days, talks to them." 

"If they can talk," Sirius put in, falling into step on Severus's other side. "You heard about the Archibald family, right? The Carrows rotted their tongues out?" 

Severus and Remus both looked over at him--Remus with a quelling look, Severus a bit more worried. He looked back at them, eyebrows raised, almost daring them to call him out on his pessimism. 

"Sorry," Sirius said after a moment of silent communication with both of them. "I'm just... tired." 

Remus reached around Severus to grab his boyfriend's hand for a moment. "I know, love. Let's see Alice and Frank, avoid getting arrested for snooping in hospital files, and then we can grab Harry and go home." 

Remus's comment was a bit stilted, but caused the intended reaction--Sirius smirked at him. "As if I'd ever get arrested for snooping, Rem." 

"No, he just gets arrested for murder." Severus said it with as straight a face as he could manage, and saw Remus whip his head around to stare at him, dumbfounded. 

Sirius turned to stare at Severus as well, mouth hanging open, and then burst into laughter, stopping stock still to double over. "Sev--oh shit, that was amazing, Merlin." 

Remus shook his head at both of them, although a corner of his mouth was twisting upward, and he turned around suspiciously quickly to continue marching down the hall. 

Sirius finally got himself under control, and then smiled widely at Severus. "I remember when I didn't think you were funny, Sev." 

Severus laughed. "I feel like most people still think that." 

Sirius clapped him on the shoulder. "Well, sucks to be them, doesn't it? Come on, Remus is liable to plan a heist without us." 

They caught up to Remus around the next corner, and all three of them sobered as they reached the ward marked on the map. Remus, still in the lead, went up to the nearest Healer. "Hello, we're hoping to see Alice and Frank Longbottom?" 

The Healer nodded and pointed a finger. "Room... 7, I think. Around the corner on the right, but they're restricted at the moment." 

"Do you know why?" 

She shrugged. "Wishes of the family, usually. Sorry, they're not my patients directly. Ask the Healer on duty, they'll tell you whatever they can." She pointed once more, this time at a busy desk to the side of the large waiting room, where a Healer looked to be holding three quills at once. 

"Thank you." 

The Healer on duty, it turned out, could tell them very little. "They underwent significant injuries, and while none of them were fatal, we're still trying to minimize and heal the damage. Their family has decided to keep them restricted from the public at this time." They said this in a rather dull voice, as if repeating a chart word for word. They probably were, at that. 

"Do you know when they will be fully recovered?" 

"No, I'm sorry, sir. You're welcome to look in their window, but I'm afraid I cannot allow you inside the room." 

Sirius looked ready to argue, and Severus felt a bit of the same, but the Healer looked like it would take more than some cajoling or threats to move them, so he and Remus pulled Sirius back and toward Room 7, peering in the window. 

Alice and Frank were the only patients inside, both of them looking smaller than normal in their beds, both of them asleep. Severus could see new, pink skin on Alice's face, likely the result of quick regrowth, and Frank's leg was thicker under the blankets, as if bandaged. But other than that... 

"I can't see any injuries that aren't basically healed," Severus said quietly, and pulled away from the small window so Remus could take a turn. 

"Alice's face--" 

"Her face?" Sirius asked, looking closer. "Oh. Fuck, it must have been bad, to still be pink like that." 

"But you're right, Severus. There's nothing blatantly wrong." 

Severus sighed. "And they're not going to tell us anything." 

"We could just ask Frank's mum. Lady Longbottom." 

Severus raised an eyebrow. "Would she tell us anything?" 

"She probably restricted them from the public because of the publicity that would happen otherwise. You've seen the _Prophet_ articles on everyone that's been attacked or threatened or... well, anything. She's probably trying to protect their privacy." 

"But she already wrote to us and told us they were here," Sirius added. "So we're not the public." 

Severus nodded. "Alright. I agree. We shouldn't just visit, though. Better to respond to the letter." 

That was easier said than done. Sirius went to bed as soon as they got home with Harry, leaving the letter 'in the capable hands of the nerds'. Severus knew he really just needed an excuse for a few minutes of solitude, something that Severus and Remus had made sure to give him every day. It was on advice from his mind Healer, who had told him in their first session that he couldn't spend all his time with people to pretend he wasn't feeling things. Remus and Severus had tried their best not to laugh at Sirius's face when he had relayed the instructions. 

It wasn't really funny, anyway. 

So Severus and Remus sat at the table in the kitchen, Severus writing and Remus offering advice, trying to pen a missive that would convince a woman they'd never met to give them information she wasn't sharing with anyone. Remus wanted to go with the truth. Severus wanted to lie his ass off. 

Remus won, if only because he had the better death glare, and took charge of the tone. Finally, after almost an hour, they had a letter they were proud of, sending it off with Thalia rather than the rather plain barn owl they'd acquired for subtlety. They wanted to be taken seriously, after all. 

And then they waited. 

For several days. 

Severus didn’t go back to St. Mungo’s, and as far as he knew, neither Sirius nor Remus did either. But every day without a reply hurt just a little. So many members of the Order had been attacked, had died, had just... disappeared. He didn’t want that to happen to Alice and Frank, too. If she didn't write back, or refused to see them...

Finally, an owl that somehow looked disparaging delivered a response from Lady Longbottom, inviting the three of them to tea the next day. Nothing else. They dithered, trying to decide whether to bring Harry or not, trying to decide whether she was going to tell them everything they wanted to know or get them arrested for... something. 

They decided against bringing Harry, dropping him at Andromeda’s this time, and Severus spent the short time between her house and the Longbottom Estate trying to figure out if they’d broken any laws. 

A house-elf answered the door when they knocked, beckoning them inside and taking their coats, and then led them to a sitting room off to the side. Severus looked around as subtly as possible—it was smaller than Potter Manor, but still rather large, with more rooms than he’d ever know what to do with. It was homey, but looked expensive, although all the decorations were a bit out of date. Severus found himself completely believing that this was the seat of the matriarch of the Longbottom family, the core of significant political power. He wondered if you could hire a decorator to give the impression of superiority to your guests. He almost laughed at the thought that if so, Sirius’s parents were certainly their biggest customer. 

Lady Longbottom sat calmly in the sitting room, a tea tray in front of her, looking rather stiff in an ornate, but rather gaudy, dress, her makeup overdone. She looked years older than Severus knew she was, the same approximate age as all of their parents. She didn’t bother standing when they entered, but Sirius bowed just slightly when he stopped in front of her, prompting Severus and Remus to do the same. 

“Lady,” Sirius said, smiling as he took a seat. His voice sounded... odd, somehow. Different, but familiar. “I’m Sirius Black. Thank you for having us in your home.” 

Lady Longbottom nodded at him, smiling politely. “I’m glad to welcome you here.” Then she turned to Remus and Severus. 

“Remus Lupin.” 

“Severus Snape.” Severus paused to take a seat, then continued. “Thank you for letting us know about Frank and Alice.” 

She bowed her head slightly, leaning forward to pour herself a cup of tea. “My son had a stack of correspondence from you, and the staff at St. Mungo’s let me know that I should... contact their friends.” 

Remus stiffened next to him slightly, and Severus winced. That was very clear language—they didn’t think Frank and Alice would recover in any significant way. They even thought that maybe— 

“Would you be willing to give us more details about their condition?” Sirius asked, still in that strange tone. 

Severus realized with a start that it was his ‘Pureblood’ voice. This whole persona, all learned at the knee of his parents. It sounded familiar because Regulus had spoken that way, almost all the time, before he and Severus had gotten closer. Severus wasn't sure whether he liked hearing it again or not.

Lady Longbottom considered them for a moment, then put her teacup back in its saucer. “You were all yearmates, is that correct?” 

“Yes, m’am,” Remus answered. “Sirius and I were in Gryffindor with Alice.” 

She turned her eyes on Severus. 

“I was in Slytherin,” he said, calmly, but braced. They could be thrown out of here just for that, right now. 

Lady Longbottom looked at him for a breath, then nodded, smile widening ever so slightly until it was more genuine. “So was I,” she said, then sighed. “They tell me that although my son and his wife are physically recovered, their minds were broken by the injuries they suffered.” 

Severus heard his intake of breath doubled by Sirius and Remus. 

“I haven’t heard of... what spell did that?” Remus asked. 

“Cruciatus,” Lady Longbottom told him, and her hand shook the teacup in it for only a moment before she brought her other hand up to steady it. “It has been known to cause these same effects before.” 

“Merlin,” Sirius whispered, sounding like he really wanted to be using stronger words. 

“Do they--” Remus stopped, glancing at Severus and Sirius, and then braced himself. “Do the Aurors know who attacked them?” 

Lady Longbottom pursed her lips, putting her tea back down again and pushing it away from her. “They don’t know definitively. But I’ve received... taunts. Threats.” Her eyes flickered to Sirius. “The Lestranges have taken credit.” 

Even though he was on the other side of Remus, Severus felt Sirius shudder. _Cousin Bella,_ he remembered Regulus saying. Who’d helped them cause trouble, when they were young. Andromeda’s sister, the woman who was caring for Harry right now. 

Severus wanted to ask if they were close to catching them, or maybe if she was sure, or if... but instead, he moved on. “And Neville is alright?” 

“Untouched,” she said. “They left him with me while they went out to get supplies and information about their next safe house.” 

They’d changed to safe houses after Lily and James had died, Severus knew. They didn’t want to stay in one place, didn’t want to put up a Fidelius charm. They’d been moving around, trying to remain unpredictable. It made sense that the Lestranges—that they’d targeted them between places. “I’m glad,” he managed to say in response. 

“So am I.” She seemed so much more human for a moment, a woman rather than a symbol, her shoulders sagging slightly. “Although I must admit, caring for a toddler is much more tiring than I had remembered.” 

Remus laughed. “I agree.” 

She raised her eyebrows slightly. “You have children?” 

“Er--” 

“I’m Harry Potter’s godfather,” Sirius told her. It was a matter of public record, after all. No reason to keep it a secret. No need to explain who Harry was, either. “We’re taking care of him, now.” 

She nodded, seeming unruffled. Severus had the distinct impression that she already knew everything they were telling her. “You have official guardianship?” 

“Yes, m’am, I do. But all three of us take care of him.” Sirius took Remus’s hand, to demonstrate their relationship status, Severus guessed. He pushed down the slight wave of awkwardness at his lack of place. How exactly could he explain ‘his mother wanted us to take care of him, all together’ without actually... saying that? Then again, she seemed to see a lot more than they were saying, so perhaps he didn’t need to. 

“We could--” Sirius hesitated, glancing at Severus. “I know that taking care of, raising, a child, it’s a lot of work. And you’re busy with caring for Alice and Frank, and taking care of the Longbottom estates and business interests. The Wizengamot chair, and other honors.” 

Severus raised his brows at Sirius slightly, but nodded and continued his thought. “We could take him, sometimes, if you’d like.” 

“We’d like to help,” Remus put in. 

Lady Longbottom looked between the three of them, something like amusement tipping the corner of her mouth up. “Did you come here to tell me that?” 

Severus looked at his friends, then back at her. “Not on purpose, m’am.” 

Lady Longbottom actually _laughed_ , and picked up a scone from the tray between them. The movement, the sound, it combined to create an effect similar to taking off a mask. Severus realized there was a good chance that the décor, the dress, the makeup, it was all for appearances sake. A calculation. “You’re rather straight-forward for a Slytherin,” she told him, and he almost smiled at the irony in the face of what he’d just realized. 

“It’s his charm,” Sirius quipped back. “And our influence.” 

Severus smiled. “It’s quicker to tell the truth, at least in most cases. And more respectful.” 

“Ah, see, that’s more like it,” Lady Longbottom said, nodding her chin in his direction. “So, you would like to help care for my grandson?” 

“Yes,” Sirius said. “Alice and Frank... we... they’re part of our family.” 

She sighed. “Well, I suppose that we could--” 

“I’m a werewolf,” Remus said, quickly, louder than he probably meant to. Everyone’s head swung to him, and he blushed, but kept talking. “I’m sorry. I thought you should know, before you agreed. I’m a werewolf.” 

Lady Longbottom nodded slowly. “And you wanted to make me aware, in case I decided not to allow you around my grandson?” 

“Yes.” 

“Do you stay in your home on full moons?” 

“No!” Remus yelped. “No, I take a potion... Severus’s, er, the Wolfsbane Potion, and go to a secluded location.” He didn’t give up the secret of his cage-in-the-woods to anyone, Severus knew. Too much of a chance of being hunted down. 

“Are you a danger any other time of the month?” 

“No,” Remus said, softer, like he knew where this was going. 

Severus definitely did, and he found himself smiling widely at Lady Longbottom. If he hadn’t liked her before, he certainly did now. 

“I don’t see why it should make any difference, then,” she finished, and then bent her head slightly to make eye contact with Remus. “But thank you for informing me.” 

He nodded, seemingly lost for words. 

“Now, as I was saying, I’m amenable to your request. I know the only reason that my son and daughter-in-law didn’t list all of you as godparents is that it wasn’t allowed, legally. I also know,” and here she paused, “that socialization with peers is important for children, and that my grandson hasn’t experienced that. I must request, though, that I return the favor, whenever Harry needs a place to stay.” 

“Yes, m’am,” Sirius said, grinning. 

“Good,” she said, smiling at them all, and then picked up her tea again. “Should I be expecting visits from more of my son’s friends, demanding quality time with a toddler?” 

Severus smiled and began to speak, and then frowned, because the answer was... no. Lily, James, and Regulus were dead. Peter was on the run, wanted, Peter was... The only other person left in their small circle, in that group that had stretched across the grass at the end of seventh year, was Mary. “Mary Macdonald will come by, I’m sure.” 

“Yes, Neville’s godmother.” She frowned slightly. “I wrote to her when I wrote to you, but have not heard back.” 

“She travels,” Remus explained. “And is often out of the country. It may take time for the letter to reach her.” 

“I see.” Lady Longbottom put down what was left of her scone, pushed her tea away, and stood. “Neville should be waking up from his nap presently. Would you all like to see him before you go?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve made the executive decision that Lady Longbottom is a Slytherin who dresses in a way to make literally everyone dismiss her. Thus, she could find out anything you want to know about Wizarding society, probably in one dinner party. Yes, the hat is on purpose, you heard it here, folks. 
> 
> ...Ok, I realize I’m going to need to make some older female characters that aren’t cunning and slightly dangerous and Slytherin-y. Oops. To be fair, I haven’t written Andromeda out of wartime, yet.


	3. Three - A Rat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry is three years old, now, and Peter Pettigrew has finally been tracked down and is on trial.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Never have I had to google so many things for this goddamn story.

It had been almost two years since Sirius Black had testified in front of the Wizengamot, willingly shown his memories, and proved Peter Pettigrew had killed those twelve Muggles in London. Almost two years of nightmares, and therapy. Almost two years of not knowing, not really, whether Peter was dead. 

All that was left was a finger. An explosion, just an instant, and he was gone. If it had been anyone else, they would have considered him obliterated. But Peter was an Animagus, and _clever_ , and they knew that. 

And then one of Sirius’s friends, someone who had made it all the way through Auror training and joined up, sent him a Patronus--“Pettigrew arrested”--and they knew for sure. 

The heads up wasn’t all it was cracked up to be, really, because they couldn’t get into the Ministry or do much of anything. The news didn’t even break until a day later. But they let Andromeda know, and they told the Ministry that they were all available to testify, and then they waited. 

And waited. 

It was three months before the trial started, and in the end, none of them were called to testify. They still had all of their memories on file, the same ones that had proved Sirius’s innocence, and that was all the prosecutor needed. In fact, at first they weren’t even going to be allowed in the courtroom, not until Andromeda used the full force of her glare to convince someone in the Ministry that Sirius had the right to be there. 

Sirius was granted the right to bring Severus and Remus with him for support, and that morning the three of them got ready in a sort of daze. They left Harry with Lady Longbottom, since both Amy and Andromeda were also going to be present at the trial, and Floo’d from her manor to the Ministry. 

Severus hadn’t been to the Ministry since Sirius’s trial, but it seemed... quieter, somehow. It was probably his imagination. Death Eater trials, as well as general war crime trials, had been happening regularly ever since the war. This wasn’t a big day for anyone around them. Still, though, as they walked away from the wand-weighing desk and toward the elevator, Severus felt a surge of adrenaline. 

The prosecutor had let them know the charges, kept them a bit in the loop, and Severus knew that they were trying to convict Peter of both the killing of the Muggles and the deaths of James and Lily. He also knew that there was next to no chance of the latter being proven, and even the first charge would be difficult. Was it murder, after all, if it was used to escape? If civilians were caught in the crossfire? 

Many Death Eaters—and every time Severus used that term in his head, he cringed a bit. Was Peter a Death Eater?--had gone free, citing the _Imperius_ curse or some other mental manipulation. Peter was in an ideal spot to do the same. 

As they walked off the elevator and toward the courtrooms, Sirius stiffened between them, and Remus took his hand as Severus laid a hand on his shoulder, holding him together as they pushed open the doors to walk in and immediately went to the right, grabbing seats near the exit in case they needed to leave suddenly. Severus wasn’t actually sure which of them had decided a quick escape strategy was needed, and the fact that they had decided without talking about it... he was ready for all the trials and attacks to be over. He was ready for the _war_ to be over. 

“His mother,” Remus said quietly, nodding his head toward a woman sitting alone on the other side of the courtroom, a Ministry employee seated next to her, tears already streaming down her face. “Helena Pettigrew.” 

“Probably a character witness,” Sirius hissed, his knuckles whitening as he squeezed the back of the bench in front of them. 

“Probably,” Severus said, squeezing the hand on his friend’s shoulder, trying to infuse his voice with calm. They just needed to get through this. 

Amy came in, and although she headed straight to the Ministry employees section, she nodded to them as she passed. A few minutes later, Andromeda came in and joined their row, sitting next to Remus quietly. And then the Wizengamot filed in, and the Chief Warlock called them to order, and then Peter was marched in. 

He looked sick—that was the first thing Severus thought, looking at him. He was pale, thinner. His hair looked unhealthy, sticking to his scalp. He’d been found in rat form, and was assumed to have been traveling like that. Had the constant animal shape caused this? Or his brief incarceration before trial? He hadn’t been in Azkaban—they'd checked, mostly for Sirius’s peace of mind. He swore up and down that Peter deserved it, that he’d be glad if he was sentenced to Azkaban, but the look in his eyes when it was mentioned... He’d told Remus and Severus more than once, in the middle of the night when they were woken up by Harry or someone’s nightmares, that he couldn’t imagine doing something horrible enough to deserve Dementors around the clock. To deserve endless torture. 

The second thing Severus noticed were his eyes. They were open, but glassy and half-lidded, and Severus knew without reaching out with his mind that Peter was fully Occluded, and possibly had been for days. Was he planning to testify like this? After all, the best way out of the murder charge was to prove he’d been afraid for his life, and the best way to prove that was to showcase memories tinged with his fear at the time. It was probably even true, to an extent. Sirius had all but admitted, during his trial, that he was going after Peter with almost no rational thoughts in his head. Angry enough to hurt, maybe to kill. 

The prosecutor was talking, now, and Severus focused, his arm pressed tightly against Sirius’s, but his eyes kept flicking back to Peter as the opening statements droned on and on. He’d been the one that Severus had related to the most from the start—quiet, more of a follower, clever. They’d co-taught Occlumency. What did it mean, that someone with so much in common with Severus had been a traitor, _the_ traitor? 

Then the court Pensieve was being dragged to the front. They’d chosen Severus’s memories of the Fidelius Charm, mostly because Remus had been facing away the whole time, and they’d been told that it would be shown first. Establishing background, the prosecutor had said. Explaining, for those watching, why Sirius had followed Peter as soon as he’d seen the house attacked. 

“I’d like to enter into evidence memories of Severus Tobias Snape, gathered during a Wizengamot trial two years ago. Memories take place at approximately 2 in the afternoon on April 14th, 1981.” 

Severus winced at his full name, and then winced again when the memory flared to life, focused on Severus facing Peter, talking carefully, but... there was Lily, standing next to him. There was James, holding Harry. His heart _hurt_ looking at them, and he stared at them for the duration of the memory, not sparing a glance for himself or Peter or Remus, sometimes visible in the background. He was sure Sirius and Remus next to him were doing the same. Sirius had sobbed when this memory had played during his own trial, emotions already a mess from Azkaban and the uncertainty about his innocence. 

And then, only a couple of minutes later, the memory flickered out. The three of them leaned back against the hard wooden bench, and Sirius let out a shaky breath. Severus watched rather blankly as the prosecutor called forward a Charms expert to walk them through the charm they’d just seen, and why Peter was undoubtedly the Secret-Keeper. Of course, they had no proof that it hadn’t been changed to someone else later, but apparently Remus and Severus together had been sufficiently believable last time. Surely it’d be the same now. 

The expert was dismissed after being equally questioned by the defense Wizard, and the prosecutor cleared his throat again. “I’d like to enter into evidence memories of Sirius Orion Black, gathered during a Wizengamot trial two years ago. Memories take place at approximately 4 in the afternoon on July 31st, 1981.” 

Sirius shuddered, and when Severus glanced over at him, his eyes were closed. Both Severus and Remus leaned in closer, and he settled a bit, nodding and squeezing Remus’s hand tighter as the Pensieve was brought to the front and the memory prepped. 

The sound was too quiet to parse this high up in the stands, and there wasn’t a lot of speech anyway, so Severus just watched the memories form on the mist and tried not to remember what he’d been doing, seeing, at the exact same moment in time. He watched as Sirius landed in front of James and Lily’s house, a flash of his own face as it paled, and then the memory focused on Peter, his face flitting through a variety of emotions before he disappeared again. 

What followed was a series of jumps, as Sirius Apparated several different places before stopping and casting a spell and Apparating again. It was something they taught in Auror training, Sirius had told them. You couldn’t track someone directly, but you could narrow down their options—as long as they didn’t jump more than twice, someone with enough training and enough focus could follow. 

Apparently Sirius had enough of both, because it was maybe three minutes later that the memory stabilized, and Severus could make sense of what he was seeing. Sirius, running down an alley somewhere in London, Peter a bit ahead of him. Always disappearing around the next corner. And then they watched, the whole courtroom, as Peter ran straight out into a square and stopped, startled, unable to move before Sirius caught up to him and swung him into the closest brick wall. 

Severus couldn’t hear the memory itself, but he heard the hissing noises of sympathy from those in the lower seats as Peter’s head hit the brick. Then they were both speaking, the words unintelligible but the tone clear enough from their expressions: Peter desperate, Sirius furious. Severus knew that to those who could analyze the memory closely, they’d be able to sense the fury—but all they have to prove Peter’s fear is the look on his face. 

It was convincing, honestly, and Severus was glad Sirius still had his eyes closed. Even knowing what Peter did, or at least what they know of it, Severus was having trouble watching this. 

And then the conversation seemed to be over. Sirius’s memory-self raised his wand, Peter did the same with a shaking hand, and then there was a bang and a flash of light at the tip of Peter’s wand, everything going black as Sirius was blown backwards. The bang was loud enough to reach even the highest seats, and Sirius jolted, breathing rapidly, holding onto both of them hard. Severus looked back down at the Pensive, but he knew that it was over—Sirius had been knocked unconscious by the explosion and hadn’t seen anything else. This memory was only to prove that Peter had cast a spell at the same moment as the explosion, and that Sirius hadn’t. Enough to prove Sirius’s innocence, and to make Peter a person of interest, but nothing more. 

Below them, the prosecutor was calling forward a memory expert and asking questions, but Severus knew how that was going to go, and focused on Sirius and Remus instead. 

“Are you alright?” 

Sirius nodded firmly, opening his eyes to look at Severus. “Second hardest part is over.” 

“Second hardest?” Andromeda asked, voice rather light under the circumstances. 

“The verdict,” Remus told her. “But all the rest of the evidence isn’t... it’s not like that.” 

Andromeda nodded. “Do you need to get some air?” 

Remus and Severus both looked at Sirius, who shook his head. “No.” 

“Alright then.” 

And then they just sat there, Remus gripping Sirius’s hand, Severus holding onto his other elbow, all three of them alternating between worried glances at each other and at the conclusions unfolding below them. 

The trial took all day, witness after witness and such a barrage of questions that Severus couldn’t keep track of anything. There was a break for lunch, but they didn’t leave the courtroom, putting up a silencing spell instead and trying to lighten the mood somewhat in their own little bubble. And then it was evening, and the defense wizard said something, and Andromeda sat up straighter. 

“What?” Remus asked her, whispering. 

“He’s resting his case,” she murmured. “He’s not going to testify.” 

“What?” Severus turned to look at them. “Why wouldn’t he testify?” 

Andromeda hesitated. “There are a couple of options. He could be... impaired. If he can’t fully give consent for his memories to be shown, they can’t show them.” 

“And the other option?” 

“That it wouldn’t help his case,” she said finally. “He wasn’t threatened into any of this, or he wasn’t really afraid for his life when he used that Exploding Charm.” 

“Which one is it?” Remus asked, but he wasn’t looking at Andromeda. He was looking down at Peter, whose eyes were still glassy, still blank. Still Occluding. 

“I don’t know,” she said, frankly. “He does seem a little... out of it.” 

“He’s Occluding,” Severus told them. 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yes. We used to practice together, since most people weren’t a match for either of us.” 

Andromeda nodded. “If he’s Occluding, then he has control over his mental faculties.” 

“Meaning that his memories wouldn’t help his case.” 

“That would be my guess.” 

_”Fuck,”_ Sirius said, quietly, and Severus nodded his agreement. What had happened, that Peter’s memories wouldn’t grant him mercy? Even Death Eaters who had killed and tortured had shown their memories, shown Lord Voldemort threatening death or torture if they didn’t comply. Surely Peter had similar memories. 

“There is a third option,” Severus said as it occurred to him. “Peter is... he’s clever, and level-headed.” 

“So?” Sirius asked, and his voice sounded bitter. “Why does that matter?” 

Severus tightened his grip on Sirius’s arm. This probably wasn’t the place to discuss this, but... “I doubt he truly let fear get to him, even in extreme situations. He’s shy, but...” 

“He’s strong when it counts,” Remus put in. “I know. He is a Gryffindor, after all.” He grimaced. 

“So maybe showing the memories, he’ll just look... cold, or something. Calculating. But if he doesn’t show them, and Occludes through the whole trial—Andromeda, you said he looked out of it.” 

She nodded. “Occlusion looks different on everyone. It’s possible some people would recognize it, but...” 

“Right. So, he doesn’t show his memories, even though it’s assumed he should, and he looks unstable the whole trial. Never says a word.” 

“...He’s a perfect candidate to be placed on medical hold,” Remus said, voice hushed. “Merlin, of course he is.” 

“He’s always looked younger than the rest of us, too,” Sirius added, grim. 

It was true. Peter had often complained about having a baby-face, and even with stringy hair and an emaciated form, he still looked several years younger than he was. Closer to 19. A teenager. Damn, had this all been calculated? 

“They’re voting,” Andromeda told them, directing their attention to where the members of the Wizengamot were shuffling papers and muttering. 

“Peter Thomas Pettigrew is accused of use of magic in front of a nonMagical, unKnowing person, use of an unauthorized violent spell, twelve counts of manslaughter, and two counts of being an accessory to murder.” The Chief Warlock was reading from a piece of parchment, and didn’t even glance up between charges. 

Severus shuddered as the list was read out. 

“We will start with use of magic in front of a nonMagical person. Those in favor of conviction?” 

Hands in the air, all of them, from what Severus could see. But then, this charge was never really in doubt. Even if he had not cast the explosion, it was clear from Sirius’s memory that Peter had cast _something_ in front of the Muggles in the square. 

“Alright. Use of an unauthorized violent spell. Those in favor of conviction?” 

Again, all hands as far as Severus could tell. 

The Chief Warlock drew himself up a bit taller. “The next charge is twelve combined counts of manslaughter of the following individuals: Pamela Robson, Dennis Harding, Sean Dixon, Andrea Dixon, Christina Dixon, Sharon Gibson, Daniel Gallagher, Heather Gallagher, Teresa Lawson, Craig Stinton, Donna West, and Barbara Cole. A reminder that as all twelve people were killed by the same spell, the defendant cannot be convicted for anything other than none or all of them. Those in favor of conviction?” 

Fewer hands now, definitely, and Severus couldn’t count them from here. 

“’Those against?” The Chief Warlock counted, briefly, and then nodded, marking it down. 

Severus thought, but couldn’t be sure, that the Chief Warlock hesitated before listing the next charge. “The final charge is two counts of accessory to murder of the following individuals: Lily Potter and James Potter. A reminder that as both of them were killed by the same person, in the same attack, the defendant cannot be convicted for only one of them. Those in favor of conviction?” 

Hands. Not a lot of them, only a few. 

“Those against?” 

More hands, definitely the majority, and Severus swallowed the urge to... something. To go down there and scream and shout. He’d betrayed them, they’d _proven_ it, hadn’t they? He’d been the Secret-Keeper, the only one who could share the information, and Lord Voldemort had found them anyway. What other story made any sense at all? 

The Chief Warlock took a breath, counted hands once more, and then looked down at his paper and nodded. “Will the defendant please stand?” 

The defense Wizard went to Peter’s side, slowly levering him up. Peter still looked dazed, confused, unsteady. Occluding hard. 

“Peter Pettigrew. On the charge of use of magic in front of a nonMagical, unKnowing person, the Wizengamot finds you guilty. On the charge of use of an unauthorized violent spell, the Wizengamot finds you guilty. On the charge of twelve counts of manslaughter, the Wizengamot finds you guilty.” 

Severus blew out a shuddering sigh. Even if-- 

“--On the charge of two counts of accessory to murder, the Wizengamot finds you not guilty.” 

Sirius made a furious noise next to him, but Severus tightened his grip and could tell Remus did the same. He’d been convicted of the twelve counts of manslaughter. It didn’t... no. It mattered, it did. But he wasn’t going free, not now. 

Remus was muttering to Sirius quickly, calming words, winding their hands together. Severus let him, focusing on Peter, who seemed not to have heard the verdict. If he was Occluding as desperately as Severus thought he was, he probably couldn’t hear anything at all. Severus found himself a little perversely upset that he couldn’t watch Peter’s face as he saw his freedom stripped away. 

“The Wizengamot will convene to discuss sentencing, and judgement will be passed within the week,” the Chief Warlock said, eyes on Peter. “Until sentencing is determined, Mr. Pettigrew will remain confined in a St. Mungo’s isolation room. The Wizengamot is thanked for their service.” 

There was a buzz as the trial ended, and the sudden noise was deafening even though the room was barely half-full. Severus watched as the defense Wizard half-dragged Peter across the room, back toward a pair of Aurors who attached anti-Magic bindings to his wrists and ankles before escorting him out. Only after he could no longer see Peter did Severus turn back to Sirius and Remus, who were embracing tightly, both of them shaking. 

Andromeda cleared her throat, drawing his attention. “Will you three be alright getting home?” 

“Yes,” Severus told her, putting a hand on Sirius’s back, wanting a point of connection. “We’ll stop and get Harry on the way. Are you still coming by this weekend?” 

“Absolutely,” Andromeda told him, smiling, but it was a wretched little grin, dimmed by their surroundings and the day they’d all had. “I’m bringing ‘Dora, so us adults can indulge in tea and gossip as we should.” 

Severus smiled weakly back at her. “We never turn down free babysitting.” 

“Nor should you.” 

Remus and Sirius released each other, and Sirius leaned against Severus for a moment before sighing. “Alright, let’s get the fuck out of here.” 

Andromeda clicked her tongue at him. “Language, cousin.” 

Sirius almost grinned, rolling his eyes at her. “Yes, cousin.” 

Severus led the way out of the bench. They’d have to get out of the Ministry before they could Apparate. He really hoped it was as low-key exiting as it had been to get in this morning. 

As they all crowded into the aisle, Remus pulled him into a tight hug for a moment, shuddering slightly before continuing down the stairs. 

Severus, now at the back of the group, took in the chair in the middle of the room once more before he walked out of the room. Merlin, he never wanted to be in this room again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone, literally no name sounds right as Peter's middle name. I spent five minutes trying things before I realized that I'll probably never have to reference it ever, ever again.
> 
> Next: Four - A Fall


	4. Four - A Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry's four, and he has a bit of an... accident.

Severus was standing at the counter, cutting up vegetables for the soup, chatting with Remus as he did paperwork. Sirius would laugh at them when he got back with the boys, both of them doing things the Muggle way, but Severus had never quite seen the need for household charms unless he had more than two things to do at a time and Remus refused to do Muggle paperwork Magically. Something about traces in the Muggle world, or something. Severus suspected he just liked to keep everything as separate as possible, so as not to say the wrong thing at his teaching job. 

“You know, I thought only being a substitute would hugely diminish the amount of homework I’d have to grade.” 

Severus raised his eyebrows but didn’t look up, focusing on the carrot in front of him. “Doesn’t it?” 

Remus sighed. “Yes? Technically? But I have to do an entire packet of this stuff every time I spend a day in a classroom. Other people’s homework would at least be easier than my own.” 

Severus chuckled. “You could probably duplicate everything each time.” 

“Don’t tempt me.” 

It was quiet, peaceful, although Severus glanced at the clock and knew it wouldn’t be for long. Harry and Neville were only four, but managed to leave destruction in their wake like a pack of rabid gnomes. 

“Lots of work tonight?” 

Severus shrugged. “A couple of potions in stasis, and I’ve got to start a few batches of Wolfsbane tonight or tomorrow.” 

“Any new requests?” Remus sometimes reached out to new Wolfsbane customers, mostly to network. If they had political or social power, they could be an asset, as both Sirius and Severus often pointed out. Remus usually responded by wiggling a finger at them and calling them Slytherins, which only one of them took joking offense to. 

“No. Usual pack leaders, and McGonagall’s passing on to someone again. It sounded like a rush job, so I didn’t charge her.” The pack leaders usually wanted to pay him something, which was just as well, but Severus had kept to his original promise to Remus. Anyone who wanted Wolfsbane could get it from him for free. Although if it got in any more demand, and Remus or Sirius’s jobs didn’t pick up, he might have to change that rule. He needed to help support them and Harry. Maybe take on more jobs, more dangerous potions-- 

“Do you need help?” 

Severus was about to reassure him—it was only about two hours of work, after all, and Remus had work tomorrow—but was interrupted by the sound of the front door slamming open. 

“Honestly, I’ve told him not to do that, he’s going to make them start slamming doors.” 

Severus laughed, listening to the cacophony approach them. “Remus, they already slam doors as loudly as they can. They’re just very small.” 

“’M not small!” Harry said, running into the room and right into Remus, who let the air get knocked out of him a bit melodramatically. “Hi, Papa.” 

“Hi, Harry,” Remus answered, a smile lighting up his face. “How were Alice and Frank?” 

“Good,” Harry responded, looking around until he found Neville, who was standing in the doorway calmly. “Nev, good, right?” 

“Yeah,” Neville told them, smiling softly, turning a little pink. 

“That’s great,” Severus told them, and then pointedly looked back down as he swept all the vegetables into the broth. Neville wasn’t usually shy, but sometimes when more than one adult focused on him, he got quiet. Severus understood the impulse. 

“Hey,” Sirius said, walking into the kitchen and over to Remus, pecking him on the cheek. “Soup? The one with the--” 

“Yep.” 

“Brilliant.” 

“Daddy,” Harry said quickly, dragging Neville over to Sirius and tugging on the edge of his robes. “Daddy, can we play Quid’ch?” 

Sirius let out a dramatic groan and dropped to his knees. “Kid, you’ll drive me to exhaustion. What if Papa does it?” 

Harry looked over at Neville, like he was considering the proposal, and then back at Sirius, shaking his head. “No, Papa does it bad.” 

“Papa does it _wrong_ ,” Sirius corrected gently. 

Remus smacked him in the back of the head. Gently. 

Sirius looked up at him indignantly. “Harry said it, not me, he’s the one who thinks I’m better.” 

Harry giggled. “No, nuh-uh, Papa’s better.” 

“What?!” Sirius gasped, turning to Neville. “Neville, do you like me better?” 

Neville was laughing too, and he looked at Harry and then laughed harder, shaking his head. 

“Then who do you like best?” 

Neville sobered, a little, and really seemed to consider the question before turning and pointing at Severus, who was watching the scene with a smile on his face. “Mister Sev.” 

Severus felt a smile stretch his face and he laughed, walking around the island and ruffling Neville’s hair. “Then can I play Quidditch?” He still wasn’t a fan, but he could at least handle the toy broom, which was specifically charmed not to go more than half a meter off the ground. 

Harry considered him and then beamed. “Yes! Sev, yes, Quid’ch.” He grabbed his hand, and Neville latched onto the other one more shyly, and then he was being dragged out to the backyard by two four-year-old boys. 

He grabbed the toy broom from the closet as he went, and when they got out to the grass of the back garden, he crouched in front of Harry and Neville and tried to make his voice firm. “Now, what are the rules of Quidditch?” 

“Share,” Harry said immediately. 

Severus nodded. “And that means...?” 

“Take turns,” Neville supplied. “’F no turns, then we can’t play.” 

“That’s right. What else?” 

Harry giggled. “Watch out for trees!” 

Severus tried to school his expression—it probably wouldn’t be funny if it had been one of the children, but the sight of Amy riding a toy broom right into a tree had honestly been the highlight of his month. “That’s right. Watch out for trees. Okay. Who’s going first?” This was a test. If they started arguing about it, that was a sign that this was not a good day for sharing. 

“Nev,” Harry said, firmly, and took a step back. 

Neville lit up, actually jumping up and down a little as he grabbed the broom from Severus and swung his leg over, then waited patiently as Severus pointed his wand and cast a weak Levitation charm so it started weaving slowly around the small backyard. Severus, seeing at least an hour of this ahead of him, sat down on the grass, keeping an idle eye on Neville and keeping the spell going. 

“That was very nice,” he told Harry. 

“It’s Visit Day,” Harry said seriously. 

Severus could hear the capital letters in his little four-year-old voice, and he thought he probably knew what Harry was saying, but he wasn’t sure. “Oh?” 

“Uh-huh. It’s Visit Day. Nev is sad.” 

“So you wanted to cheer him up?” 

Harry nodded, then sat down in Severus’s lap. 

Severus let Harry’s words sink into him, even as he savored the weight of this child in his lap. He knew, from the multitude of parenting books they’d all devoured, that he wouldn’t want to sit in their laps or hold their hands for that much longer. He wasn’t looking forward to it. Or maybe Sirius and Remus would... they’d move first, or something, and he’d end up only visiting. 

He watched Neville flying carefully around the yard, seeming to scan the path in front of him like someone surveying choppy seas, instead of an entirely open area. If even Harry could tell how Visit Days affected him, they might have to talk about it again. They took both of them to see Alice and Frank about once a month, trading off which adult accompanied them. Alice was Harry’s godmother, after all, and they were the only remaining members of that group from the Hogwarts lawn, years and years ago. Unless Mary was—well, unless they heard from Mary. But it had been too long, now, without word. 

Severus knew that Augusta took Neville to see his parents by himself more often, too. Severus felt supremely disqualified to have an opinion, but he had to wonder how much it helped, for Neville to see his parents like that. Walking around, alive, but not really... there. Did Neville really understand? Did it help, would it help in the long run? 

It wasn’t his choice to make, anyway, and Augusta seemed set on making sure Neville visited often. 

There was a noise behind them, and Severus half-looked behind him as he kept his wand trained on Neville. Sirius was coming down the back steps of the house and toward them. He collapsed on the ground next to Severus, and then raised his wand and ran through the wards, checking them. The wards were a lot more complicated, and more powerful, now that they’d moved out of the small flat and into a larger house. It was worth it for the extra room, though. Severus had not been looking forward to sharing a room with a toddler. 

“Something wrong?” Severus murmured, keeping his voice pleasant so he wouldn’t alarm Harry, who was shouting out encouragements to Neville from his lap. 

“No,” Sirius said, sighing, and then laid back on the grass, staring at the sky. 

Severus looked back at him, concerned, but dropped it, facing forward again and watching Neville come closer, closer, until he was in front of them and jumping off. “Your turn!” he told Harry. 

Harry jumped up. “Thanks!” He grabbed the broom and then turned back to the adults. “Can Nev play Bludger?” 

Sirius laughed from the ground. “Yes, if you’re both very careful. Remember, watch for trees.” 

“Okay!” And Harry was off, whizzing faster than Neville had been, but still no faster than the boy now running behind him. 

Severus watched them run around for a minute before he sighed. “You want to change your answer?” 

Sirius laughed. “I’m a little on edge.” 

“Why?” 

Sirius shrugged. “They moved Peter.” 

Severus almost lost control of the Levitation Charm, he whipped around so fast. “What?” 

Sirius sighed, waving a hand. “Not out, or anything. He’s still at St. Mungo’s, still in an isolation room. Still guarded.” 

“But they moved him.” 

“To the fourth floor.” 

Severus sucked in a breath. “Where Alice and Frank are.” They’d been moved, after the Healers had confirmed that they’d done all they could, to the Janus Thickey ward. “I didn’t know there were isolation cells on that floor.” 

“I think that’s rather the point,” Sirius said dryly. “Anyway, I just... I checked, because you know I can’t help it, and even though they wouldn’t tell me where he _was_ …" 

“You knew he was on that floor.” 

Sirius sighed. “Yeah. So here I am, double-checking the wards and unable to let Harry leave my sight.” 

“Part of being a parent,” Severus said automatically. 

“Fuck, I hope not,” Sirius said. “Please tell me someday I won’t feel like he’s going to get kidnapped every day.” 

“I... have no idea,” Severus told him honestly. “I don’t have wisdom on this one.” 

“I think this is one of those ‘ask your parents’ questions.” 

Severus laughed. Of the three of them, Remus was the most likely to talk to his parents—he still visited for Christmas and his birthday, and they exchanged painfully polite letters, avoiding the fact that they thought he was ruining his already-doomed life. Sirius hadn’t spoken to his parents, hadn’t written them since Regulus’s death. They’d heard that his father had died last year through the _Daily Prophet_. Sirius had finished a bottle of Firewhiskey, Harry spending the night at Longbottom Manor, and hadn’t cried once. 

“Yeah,” Sirius agreed. “So that’s out.” 

“Mister Sev! Mister--” Neville yelled from across the yard. 

Both adults jumped to their feet immediately, and Severus’s heart dropped to the center of the fucking world as he spotted Harry, still on the broom rising steadily into the air. Already at his eye level. 

“Fuck!” he yelled, pouring awareness into his wand. Was he—but it wasn’t supposed to—but no, the Levitation charm was still weak, no more than making something hover slightly off the ground. He couldn’t break it, though, not when the shock could bring it crashing to the ground. He could see Harry breathing hard, his body shaking, looking down at the ground below him. 

“Severus!” 

“It’s not me!” he shouted back at Sirius who had pulled his wand out and was casting frantically. 

“Just stop the--” 

“He could _fall_ ,” Severus hissed. “Put a—under him, put a--” 

Sirius cursed rather inventively and raised his wand again, and a slightly translucent shape appeared under Harry. A cushion of air that would catch him. 

Severus exhaled, hard, and canceled the Levitation spell, but the broom just kept rising, faster now, above their heads. 

“Harry!” came a shout behind them, and Severus heard Remus sprint out into the yard and then jump into action, dragging Neville backwards and out of the way, scooping him up in his arms. 

“Papa,” Harry called out to Remus, his voice breaking, and the fear in his voice put a lance of terror through Severus’s heart. 

“I cut the spell,” Severus told Sirius, trying to calm his breathing, calm his everything, but he could hardly hear anything over his heart pounding in his ears. “I’m going to—I'll bring it down.” 

“Do it!” Sirius told him, close to yelling. “Right now, Sev, fuck—” 

Severus shuddered and cast a spell, something to push the broom slowly downward, but it only stopped its motion, didn’t reverse it. 

Remus stepped up between them, still holding Neville on his hip. “Sirius, hold it steady, okay?” he said, voice carefully calm. 

“What are you going to do?” Sirius asked him, teeth clenched. 

“Harry?” Remus said, rather than answer him. “Harry, Daddy’s got you, okay? Can you climb off the broom and onto that shield under you?” 

“No! Papa--” 

“You can do it, Harry,” Remus repeated, although Severus could feel him shaking where their arms were touching. 

Severus focused harder on the charm, trying to push the broom back down, but it just shook violently for a moment, and Harry cried out, and he backed off. Fast. 

“Harry,” Remus said again. 

Harry let out an audible sob and then closed his eyes, swung one leg over the broom, and let go. 

“Shit,” Sirius cursed, and Severus whipped his head around in concern, but Sirius’s eyes wide, and he was... grinning? 

“What?” 

“I’m not holding him up,” Sirius said. 

Severus looked back at Harry. What was Sirius talking about? He was standing right on top of the—no, wait. His knees were slightly bent, and his feet weren’t-- “He’s floating,” he breathed. 

Sirius lowered the shield slowly, and Harry lowered with it, eyes still firmly closed, but he was floating maybe three centimeters above it. 

“Only James Potter’s child,” Remus muttered, but he sounded so relieved. Severus choked out a laugh. 

As soon as Harry’s feet touched the ground, he collapsed onto his butt, tears streaming down his cheeks. Not a moment later, the toy broom hit the ground a couple of meters behind him with a thump. 

All three adults ran toward him at once, but Sirius got there first, scooping Harry up in his arms. “You’re okay, you’re okay, you’re--” 

Severus ignored the rest of the words, settling for putting a hand on Harry’s back, covering it completely with his palm. Remus leaned his head on Sirius’s shoulder, leaning Neville close enough that he could reach out and take Harry’s hand. Harry looked up at his friend and smiled, his eyes watery. At the sight of Harry’s smile, Severus let out a shaky breath, strengthening his knees so they wouldn’t buckle. 

“Accidental magic,” Remus said after a minute or so of them just standing there and catching their breath. “I mean, unless...” 

Sirius shook his head, Harry’s head buried in his neck again. “I checked the wards maybe five minutes ago.” 

Remus nodded. “Alright. Flight’s actually a pretty common one, you know.” 

“Well, that’s terrifying.” 

“Harry’s magic?” Neville asked. 

Remus shifted the boy a bit higher on his hip. “Yes. He’s got magic in him, like me or Sirius or Sev, and his magic made him fly higher than he wanted to.” 

“Oh.” 

“We’ll need to start lessons,” Sirius said quietly. “For control, and for Occlumency.” 

Severus raised his eyebrows, and then lowered them. “Pureblood tradition?” 

“...not sure,” Sirius said after a moment. “Could just be a Black thing.” 

“It’s a good idea either way,” Remus commented, then sighed. “Okay. The soup is definitely burnt. Inside, everyone, please. How do we feel about takeaway?” 

Harry recovered quickly, asking question after question about what his ‘magic lessons’ would be like. Half of them were “Why?”. Severus and Remus let Sirius take the lead, since he was the only one who had gone through them. Remus had been given books, but was discouraged from using magic before he was taught at Hogwarts. Severus had learned quickly to snuff out his magic as much as possible around the house. 

As they ate through the mountain of Chinese food that Sirius had ordered—Severus regretted teaching him how to order over the telephone—Severus mostly stayed quiet, let his heart rate stabilize after the scare, and watched Neville get more and more nervous, for some reason. Was he still scared because of the toy broom? 

When the boy disappeared after dinner without even an excuse, Severus looked at Remus and cocked his head in the direction Neville had gone. Remus nodded in understanding, continuing to collect the used plates. They did most of the housework by hand, to hopefully discourage the magic versus non-magic argument when they started assigning Harry chores. Severus was betting Sirius several Galleons that it wouldn’t work. 

Neville was in the guest bedroom, curled up on the bed, which was where he usually hid out when he and Harry had an argument, or when he was upset about something. Severus understood the impulse—the guest bedroom was in the back of the small house, almost never used, and usually quiet. 

“Neville?” he asked, sitting down on the ground beside the bed. “Is something wrong?” That was a bit of a rhetorical question, but he’d learned quickly that ‘what’s wrong’ wasn’t as useful. It was hard for toddlers to articulate their feelings, sometimes, but ‘yes’ or ‘no’ was always easy. 

Neville turned over to face him, revealing a red face and tears in his eyes. “No,” he whispered. 

Severus nodded, accepting, but stayed right where he was, looking down at his hands like they were fascinating. 

They sat there for a few minutes, the silence broken only by the occasional sniffle, and then Neville let out a breath. “Harry’s magic.” 

Severus looked up at the boy. “Yes, he is.” 

“’M not magic.” 

Severus resisted the urge to hit himself in the forehead. Of course that was why Neville was upset—hadn't he watched the same thing happen to Petunia Ev—Dursley? Instead, he tilted his head to the side. “Well, we’re not sure, yet.” 

“Why not?” 

Severus’s mind started listing magical theory, wizarding genetics, and he made it stop. “We know Harry is magic because he did magic by accident, today. We don’t know if you’ve done magic before, or if you’ll do it later.” 

“My Mum and Dad are magic, and my Gran,” Neville said, sounding very serious for a four-year-old. 

“That’s true,” Severus said. “And that means you’ll probably be magic too, but it doesn’t mean you definitely will be.” 

“Maybe not?” 

“Maybe not.” 

Neville sniffled again, curled up a little smaller. “What if ’m not?” 

Severus hummed, putting his elbows on his knees. “Well then, you’ll go to a different school, and learn different things, probably. That’s up to your Gran.” 

“Can I still come over?” 

“Yes,” Severus said, making sure his voice was as firm and certain as he could make it. “You can come here no matter how magic you are, even if it’s not even a little bit.” 

Neville sniffed again, louder this time, and launched himself off the bed and onto Severus. 

“Oof,” Severus verbalized, and then cursed himself when Neville flinched. “Thank you for the hug, Neville,” he corrected quickly. 

“Y’r welcome,” Neville said into his shoulder, ever the polite child even as he wiped snot onto Severus’s shirt. 

Severus stifled a laugh and held the boy a little closer. 

That night, after Neville had gone home and Harry had gone to sleep in the middle of talking about what magic he would learn first, Severus, Remus, and Sirius gathered around a half-eaten plate of cookies in the kitchen. 

“Alright, what is he actually going to learn?” Remus asked Sirius. “I mean, I suppose you do actually have a plan.” 

Sirius hesitated. 

Remus groaned. “Sirius, we cannot afford to hire someone for this.” 

“You’re the teacher, you know.” 

“Yes, but you still have to tell me what to teach him.” 

“If it’s a Black thing, Andromeda might know,” Severus put in. “And if it’s a Pureblood thing, I can write to Cora.” 

“Cora’s a capital idea,” Sirius agreed. “And I bet ‘Dromeda started Dora early, since she had to deal with Metamorphagus accidents.” 

Severus sighed, placing his head carefully on the table. “Small blessings, that he flew instead of changing his entire face.” 

“It’s not just early magic lessons we have to decide,” Remus said. “Now that we know he has magic, for sure--” 

“He’ll get a Hogwarts letter.” Sirius’s face was wrinkled in disgust. “Do we actually want him anywhere near Dumbledore? Even if he’s not... what we thought he was.” 

They’d put aside the thoughts of heirs and evil and all of that when James and Lily died, when Lord Voldemort was defeated. What was the point of trying to figure it out further? Anything they did would just put Harry in harm’s way again. Still, none of them trusted Dumbledore as far as they could punt him. Hard. 

“But another school involves another country,” Remus pointed out. “And in this case, it might be the devil you know. We know our way around Hogwarts. Hell, I have permission to be in the Shack once a month if I need it, and there’s a secret passage—we could probably sneak on the grounds if we really needed to. And we know the other professors there.” 

“It’s up to Harry too,” Severus said, although he didn’t want to. “Or at least, we should tell him why we’re worried. Bits of it.” 

“When he’s older.” 

Severus and Sirius nodded in agreement. 

“Before then...” Remus hesitated. “I know Purebloods usually aren’t a fan of Muggle primary school.” 

Sirius shook his head. “No, I always wished I had gone, the way you spoke about it. Although Dora will be furious, since she got stuck at home.” 

“She wouldn’t stop changing her nose,” Severus said, an eyebrow raised. “There was no way they were letting her anywhere near Muggles until she was old enough to control it, and by the time she could, it was almost time to start Hogwarts. Speaking of which, we should write to Andromeda, see how she’s doing. First year is tough.” 

“Andromeda did a good job with homeschooling everything. We could do that too. He’s not a Metamorphogus, but he’s still Harry Potter.” 

“Not in the Muggle world, not really,” Severus pointed out. “And we can enroll him under a different name.” 

“What fake name is a five-year-old going to remember?” 

“Harry James,” Sirius pointed out. “James is a last name too, sometimes.” 

It was Remus’s turn to put his head on the table, now. “I know he should go to school. I just... also don’t want him to.” 

Severus laughed. “He’s going to get older either way, you know.” 

Remus raised a middle finger in his direction without looking up. “I know.” 

“So, who’s going to put a ward over the house so no toddlers fly away forever?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Years six, eight, and nine are still up for grabs! I had the vague idea of Harry freaking out that he and Neville would be in different houses, but we just had 'what if i'm not magic' angst and that seems a bit repetitive.
> 
> Next up: Five - A Name


	5. Five - A Name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry is five, and headed off to his first day of primary school. Missing his two front teeth.
> 
> But it's not what he _can't_ say that throws Severus for a loop.

“Thev, I _can’t_.” 

“Yes, you can, Harry. It’ll be fine.” 

“No, it won’t! They'll laugh at me all day and I won’t make any friendth and they’ll all hate me forever.” Harry pouted. “...Thith ith _therious_!” he added after a moment, when Severus chuckled. 

“Better not let your dad hear you using that word,” Severus said, still grinning. 

Harry huffed in frustration and crossed his arms. “Thtop laughing at me.” 

Severus sobered, glancing at Harry as the light in front of them turned red and they slowed to a stop. “I’m not, I promise. Everyone loses teeth at around the same age, Harry. I bet there will be other kids in your class who are missing some.” 

“Yeah, but not _thethe oneth_!” Harry insisted, pulling his lips back with his fingers to show off his missing two front teeth. “Thethe oneth are the wortht.” 

“Fingers out of your mouth, please,” Severus said automatically, and then the light turned green and they were moving again. “Harry, it really will be fine. If anyone doesn’t like you because of your teeth, then you wouldn’t want to be their friend anyway, right?” 

“But what if they’re all like that?” 

Severus saw the school building up ahead and pulled into the parking lot, backing into a spot quickly before turning to face the five-year-old in the backseat. “They won’t be. I promise. But even if you don’t have a best friend, you already have friends, right? You have Susan and Neville and Dora.” Severus thought about telling him that he hadn’t had friends until he was ten, but that was probably a bad idea. 

“Dora thaid that when you’re twelve you’re not a friend, you’re a role model,” Harry said, but he seemed a little less upset. 

Severus winced. “Please let’s not use Dora, who likes to wear a pig nose around the house, as a role model, okay?” 

“Okay,” Harry agreed, craning his head to look at the building. 

“Okay,” Severus muttered to himself, getting out and grabbing Harry’s bag out of the passenger seat. By the time he double-checked that nothing magical was showing and stowed his wand under the seat, Harry was out of the car and standing on the sidewalk, looking nervous again. 

“You’re coming in, right?” 

“Yes,” Severus told him, handing over the bag they’d gotten him. It had characters from some television show on it, which had prompted a long conversation about when they were getting a television. Severus hadn’t quite forgiven Remus for picking it out. 

Severus held out his hand to walk inside, but Harry hesitated, so Severus crouched down in front of him. “Still nervous?” 

Harry nodded. “My teeth look thtupid and tho doeth my thcar.” 

“Your teeth look like you’re growing up,” Severus countered. “And your scar looks like you’re alive.” Harry knew the story of his scar, although they hadn’t gone into too much detail. They’d never lied to him, though, and there were pictures of James and Lily all over the house. They weren’t going to let him wonder, or worry. They weren’t going to let him feel self-conscious over proof that he’d survived. 

“Don’t leave,” Harry told him, his small face very solemn. 

“Not until you tell me I can,” Severus replied in the same tone. “Ready, Harry James?” 

Harry nodded, taking his hand and allowing himself to be led to the school building. 

They walked in the front doors, and Severus immediately saw big, colorful signs, telling him exactly where to go. Relieved, he followed the red signs to the ‘Year R’ classrooms, and then ran a finger down a list on the wall. “Harry James, with Ms. Jones,” he told Harry, and then crouched down again. “That means your last name and her last name start with the same letter,” he told him. “Will that help you remember?” 

Harry nodded. “I’ve been practithing all week, Thev.” 

“I know.” Severus sighed, ruffling the boy’s hair. He wished they hadn’t had to enroll him under a fake name, but even though no one had contested Sirius’s guardianship, they’d had to Apparate away from reporters or overly interested strangers more than a few times over the years. “Alright, it’s this way.” 

Harry was walking beside him, but as soon as they got to the doorway, suddenly he was behind Severus, looking around his legs into the room. 

“Hello! I’m Tabitha Jones,” An older woman called, making her way toward the door. “Give me just a moment, don’t want to knock over any pupils on my first day,” she laughed, face open and bright, and Severus immediately felt better. Which was exactly the point, he figured. 

“Hello,” he said, once she got close enough, holding out a hand to shake. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Severus James.” He was Tobias James on the forms, but he’d decided Severus would still be his middle name. He wasn’t going to go by Toby or Tobias, even if it was only here. 

“Severus?” she asked, eyes only widening slightly in surprise as they shook hands. 

He nodded. 

She grinned. “Well, I won’t forget that one. I’m sure you get that all the time.” 

“Eccentric mother,” he said, as he always did when he introduced himself to Muggles. 

“Sounds like,” Ms. Jones agreed, and then crouched down. “And you are?” 

Severus glanced at Harry, who looked up at him and then squared his shoulders and stepped to the side, holding out his own hand. “I’m Harry Jameth. Our latht nameth thtart the thame way.” 

“They certainly do,” Ms. Jones agreed. “It’s nice to meet you. Thank you for shaking my hand, that’s very polite of you. Would you like to come see your cubby?” 

Harry immediately stepped toward Severus again, grabbing his hand. 

“All our adults are staying for a little bit, so that we can introduce ourselves,” Ms. Jones told Harry, not batting an eye or changing her tone of voice at his sudden shyness. “Can I show you and Severus your cubby?” 

Harry nodded. “Yeth, thank you.” 

Ms. Jones smiled. “You’re welcome. You know, Lara has the same teeth growing in right now? You’re both going to have big-kid teeth in no time.” 

Harry smiled, bigger than he had all morning, and before Severus knew it, he was being dragged across the room toward the storage spaces for each student. They found Harry’s, already labelled, and put his bag away, and then quickly were introduced to Lara and her mother, Camila. Lara was, indeed, missing the same teeth. She and Harry avoided ‘s’s together while Severus introduced himself. 

“Severus?” Camila asked, almost exactly the way Ms. Jones had. 

Severus laughed. “Yes. I promise.” 

Camila grinned. “Sorry. Just never heard that one.” She paused, glancing at the children. “Is Harry your oldest?” 

“He’s... I’m one of his guardians,” Severus said. He still hadn’t figured out how to answer this question. “But yes, I don’t--he’s an only child.” He remembered, as he’d been remembering every so often for the past month or so, that he really was _actually_ Harry’s guardian, now. Part of the plan for Harry spending more time in the Muggle world, in school, had been to legally tie him to Severus, since Severus was the one who could take him places and navigate the nonMagical world easily. The easiest way had turned out to be... marriage. 

He was legally married to Sirius Black. He pushed the omnipresent thought aside and focused on the woman in front of him so he wouldn’t make a horrified face at her. 

Camila was nodding at his complicated explanation, and seemed to sense that this wasn’t a simple conversation, instead redirecting to what he thought of the school. Severus liked her common sense and tact immediately, and resolved to get her contact information. From the look of Harry and Lara, there were playdates in their future. 

Ms. Jones called the class, and their adults, to order, and Severus stood beside Harry at the edge of the room as one by one, each child introduced themselves and their adult to the room. Each child introduced their adult as their mum or their dad, and Severus got slightly more worried as they went around the room. He’d just had this problem with Camila, and he hadn’t... Would Harry worry about what to say? They should have talked about this. He could have explained ‘guardian,’ or maybe ‘family friend’. 

“I’m Lara and I like purple,” Lara announced from her place next to them. “Thith ith my mum, and her favorite thing ith talking to the telly man.” 

Camila winced, and the adults in the room chuckled quietly. “Jeopardy,” she told the room. “It’s... I like Jeopardy.” 

Severus grinned at her. “That’s what she said, isn’t it?” he asked, quietly. 

Camila rolled her eyes, and then Harry pulled at Severus’s hand, to remind him to pay attention. Severus straightened and looked down, nodding at him. “Go ahead.” Whatever he said, he said. He could clear it up later. 

Harry took a breath and faced the room. “I’m Harry, and I like football.” He looked up at Severus, grinning, and Severus smiled back, knowing that Sirius had explained ‘football’ so that Harry could talk about Quidditch. “Thith ith my Thev, and he liketh cooking.” 

Severus blinked down at him. Harry had used ‘Sev’--or at least his current pronunciation of it—where all the other children had used ‘Dad’ or ‘Mum’. 

Did that—did he—did Harry _always_ mean ‘Dad’ when he said ‘Sev’? He’d thought it was a nickname, the same way that Remus or Sirius used it, a shortened version of a very complicated name. He’d thought... did Harry mean _Father_? 

Severus furiously blinked back quite a lot of tears and pulled himself together, just long enough to catch the last of the introductions. 

“Alright, let’s say goodbye to your adults! When you’re done, come to the carpet and we’ll read a book,” Ms. Jones announced. 

Harry pulled on Severus’s hand, and he crouched down. 

“’Bye, Thev,” Harry said, hugging him tightly for a moment and then spinning away to go sit on the carpet. 

Severus stared after him for a moment, putting all of his strength into not crying for a multitude of reasons. Finally, he straightened. 

“I know,” Camila said, and he glanced over to find her smiling at him, her eyes damp. “Lara’s the youngest of three, and it still gets me.” 

Severus forced out a laugh, and was horrified that it sounded wet. “Right. Well, goodbye,” he said quickly, not missing her amused look as he basically ran out of the room. 

He drove home in a haze, and was honestly surprised that he hadn’t run into anything when he pulled into the space in front of the house. 

“Hello, husband,” Sirius said when he walked in. That had been his favorite joke for approximately the entire time they’d been legally married. Perhaps the only thing not making it awkward and sad—since Sirius couldn’t legally Remus due to bullshit lycanthropy laws—was that none of them could mention it without laughing. 

Severus flipped him off absent-mindedly, not even bothered anymore. He made it to the kitchen counter and collapsed into a chair. 

“Whoa,” Sirius said, pulling up another seat. “What?” 

“Harry called me Sev.” 

Sirius raised his eyebrows. “Yes? That’s kind of what he does. Well, nowadays it’s more like ‘Thev’.” 

“No, he...” Severus tried to make his brain work. “He called me ‘his Sev’. Like, his Dad, his Papa, his Sev. Sev.” 

“...Yes?” 

“You knew he was doing that?” Severus asked, incredulous. “I didn’t think he was doing that.” 

“What did you think he was doing?” 

Severus paused. “I don’t know. Calling me by my name, but shorter?” 

“I imagine that’s what you intended,” Sirius agreed. 

Severus threw up his hands. “What does that mean?” 

Sirius grinned, but his eyes were fond. “It means that you can’t be someone’s father and not have whatever they call you be the equivalent of ‘Dad’.” 

“I’m not his father,” Severus said, automatically. 

Sirius furrowed his brow. “What?” 

Severus stared at him. “I’m not his father?” 

Sirius just looked at him for a moment. “Alright, so I’m not Remus, or you, so I really can’t apply logic to this... whatever this is. Do you want to be his father?” 

Severus opened his mouth, closed it again. Opened it again. “I’m... not sure?” 

“Ok. Why?” 

Severus considered it. For several minutes. Finally, he thought he had enough of his head wrapped around it, although it probably wouldn’t make any sense to most people. “’Father’ really doesn’t mean... it doesn’t mean great things, to me. Obviously. Which is a cliché reason. It’s not that... it’s not about Harry, which sounds all sorts of insulting. The word ‘father’ doesn’t point to happy and shiny to me.” 

Sirius nodded. “I get that. Okay, new question. Do you want to raise him?” 

That was a much easier question. “Yes.” 

“Alright. Do you want to be his parent? Here’s a hint: if you want to raise him, you want to be his parent.” 

“...Then yes?” 

“Okay. Congrats, you’re his parent.” 

“What?” 

Sirius shrugged. “You want to be his parent. He wants you to be his parent, as evidenced by the ‘Sev’ thing that apparently happened today, and has actually been happening for years. You’re doing the parenting, as evidenced by the fact that you just dropped him off at school and will go pick him up in a few hours and all the other things you do on a daily basis. Thus: parent. And that’s not even touching on the legal guardian thing, mostly because Remus is his parent too, so that part doesn’t matter very much.” 

“...That was actually pretty logical.” 

Sirius made a face. “Merlin, don’t say that. And don’t tell Remus.” 

Severus sat there for a moment, staring at his hands, and then to his shock, he was crying. “Shit,” he managed, pulling his wand out of his pocket to conjure a handkerchief. “Fuck.” 

Sirius chuckled, but moved around the counter anyway and laid a hand on his back. “You’re only about four years late with this.” 

“What do you mean?” Severus managed, not looking up at him. Merlin, he was a mess. 

“You don’t think Remus and I cried? Well, I cried the first night that Harry fell asleep in my arms after I got back from prison. Sobbed like a baby, joke intended. Remus cried about a month after that, when we got the papers that said they weren’t contesting guardianship.” 

“Oh.” 

“Yeah. We thought that you were doing a stiff-upper-lip thing, or that you were really good at Silencing Charms. Gotta say, this makes me feel better about it.” 

Severus laughed, hiccupping slightly, and leaned his head gently on Sirius’s upper arm. “He should still call me Sev.” 

“Well, yes,” Sirius agreed. “Mostly because we’re running out of words. Father, mother, papa, dad. Unless you wanted to be ‘Père’ or something.” 

They sat there, Sirius making jokes and Severus crying, for a good ten minutes before Severus pulled away. Sirius didn’t comment, just going to the kettle. “Do you want tea?” 

Severus watched him, thinking about how this conversation probably would have been a lot more complicated with Remus or if, Merlin forbid, he’d tried to work through it on his own. “Yes,” he said. “Thanks, husband.” 

Sirius flipped him off, grinning, and then dug in the cabinet for his favorite tea. 

The conversation was... well, not exactly repeated when Remus came home, but rehashed. Harry was already in bed, tuckered out from his first day of school, an art project covered in glitter clutched in his fist. 

“You didn’t know?” Remus said. “I thought you were being stoic, or something. Untouchable. Formal.” 

Sirius snorted. “I’m pretty sure Sev looks like that when he’s trying to desperately hide ignorance.” 

Severus wanted to argue that, but really couldn’t. “I just... didn’t know.” 

“What did you think you were? To him, to us?” 

“I...” Another paycheque, his brain supplied. An extra pair of hands. But those sounded insulting, now that he actually thought about saying them. “A family friend,” he decided on. “That helped out.” 

Remus gaped. “You thought you were _helping out_ by being the one who stayed home all day?” 

“Yes?” 

Remus came and sat down next to him on the couch. “I’m hugging you now.” 

“...okay,” Severus agreed after a moment, letting Remus envelop him in his arms. “Why?” 

“Because you didn’t get that you’re family,” Remus said into his shoulder, and then pulled back and looked him in the eyes. “You’re family, Sev. We’re all co-parenting, together, because we’re a family.” 

Severus stared at him, trying to figure out how to respond. 

Sirius walked past, putting a hand briefly on Remus’s shoulder. “Let him process, love.” 

Remus sighed, then leaned back against the couch, closing his eyes. “Yes. Sorry.” 

Severus looked at him for another minute, and then put away the words to think about later, leaning back and resting his head next to Remus’s. 

“Sorry we didn’t tell you before,” Remus said, his eyes still closed. “I want to say I thought it was obvious, but... I know you. I know that it’s not obvious to you all the time. Sirius is the same way. So it’s more...” he huffed, turning sideways and opening his eyes. “At the beginning, to say anything like that would have been devastating.” 

“Because of James and Lily,” Severus supplied. It was still kind of devastating, honestly. 

“Yeah. And there was a lot of time, between the thought just... between not being able to think it, and knowing that we were a family. But I don’t remember the moment I figured out that’s what we were. I think the thought of actually having that conversation was just... a lot.” 

“What conversation?” Sirius asked, coming back in the room and settling down on Remus’s other side. 

“The ‘are we a family’ conversation,” Remus told him. “I mean, that was a little like proposing to you, and adopting Harry officially, and making a lifelong commitment to Severus, all in one talk.” 

Severus choked a little bit on nothing. 

Remus turned to look at him, quickly. “Sorry, that’s a lot. I just... we’re his parents, you know? Even if we end up not living together, not being as close, we’ll still have a child.” 

Severus nodded in agreement, trying to figure out how he felt about the words ‘lifelong commitment’. 

Sirius sighed, curled up around Remus, head on his shoulder. “I think we’re a family. In a better way than most families are, too.” 

“I think we’re a little biased on the subject of family,” Severus commented. 

“I mean, we’re definitely biased, but that doesn’t make it untrue.” 

Severus paused, looking at both of them, thinking of Harry in the next room, probably completely coated in glitter at this point. “I think we’re a family.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finished plotting out The Long Game today!! ...Lucius Malfoy decided to be important, for some reason.
> 
> Next up, Six - A... something. I haven't figured out six. Please, someone, tell me what you want six-year-old Harry to have issues with.
> 
> Maybe Dora Tonks can make an appearance??


End file.
